Woodstock, Bull Valley finalize plans for dog park

WOODSTOCK – Woodstock dog lovers long awaiting a park to toss the tennis ball to their canine companions are close to having just that.

The city has signed off on a plan with Bull Valley to bring a dog park to a seven-acre piece of Bull Valley land. Residents of both municipalities will have paid access to the park at the corner of Country Club Road and Bull Valley Road, which is on pace to open late this month or early next.

“It’s been one of those long-range plans for quite a few years,” said Cort Carlson, Woodstock’s director of community and economic development. “This was a great opportunity to get a dog park for our residents and partner with another community.”

Total costs to construct the park aren’t expected to exceed $25,000, with each side covering half. Bull Valley has taken the lead on building the park and will maintain it with permit fees and daily fees.

Bull Valley Village Administrator Rich Vance said that in the early stages, the village will offer a limited number of yearlong permits on a first-come, first-served basis.

In the future, he envisions the village offering daily passes and possibly services such as dog training.

“When we get to doing daily passes, there’s a lot more personnel that’s needed and time,” he said. “But we want to get it open and find out what issues there are, and go from there.”

The park will be part of a community center Bull Valley is planning in the area.

“The seven-acre dog park is kind of like the first thing that we’re going to do,” Vance said.